Design, Analysis and Control of the 4 Fingers Rehabilitation Robot

Abstract

<strong>Background:</strong> People who have lost their ability to walk, shake hands or even talk due to brain stroke may revert their ability back to normal or near normal with the assistance of rehabilitation robots. Previous literature reviews of rehabilitation studies have shown that, in most cases, repeated movement of a patient's member can help restore the function of the injured member in patients, in which, the use of robots can be very effective. <strong>Method:</strong> The method of this research is the experimental method. The paper aims to investigate the ability of a parallel robot for rehabilitation of injured fingers. The motions of human finger joints for physical therapy purposes has been investigated and been considered as the optimal route of the design process and as the set point of control procedure of robot movements. The proposed robot has been designed with the right choice of kinematic loops, where the robot pursues the optimal path to rehabilitation, and at the same time, does not come into direct contact with the patient, allowing the patient to be more tolerant as they feel more comfortable and at ease. In addition to the above-mentioned advantages, the designed robot reduces the number of operators as well as the number of parameters necessary to change and control the algorithm for different patients. <strong>Results: </strong>After presenting the robot's conceptual design, the kinematics analysis of the robot was dealt with. In the next step, the dynamic equations of the robot were extracted. Ultimately, using the control methods, the position, stability and efficiency of the rehabilitation robot was simulated. Finally, the constructed prototype of the robot is presented and control method and program sectors are introduced. <strong>Conclusion: </strong>The proposed robot for rehabilitation of four fingers with a simplified design and low cost of manufacturing could be used in robotic applications in home based care for disabled people.